Great question

The Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has a podcast in which he interviews various figures and has deep conversations about life and faith. In June he interviewed John Cleese, the comedian. In the interview Cleese asked Welby the following question — “Why do religions start with the mystics and end up with bureaucrats?” ( You can listen to the entire interview here. The question and Welby’s answer start soon after the 20 minute mark).

I would encourage you to listen to Welby’s answer. But I would also encourage you to think about the question yourself. It’s an important question.

My answer to the question is that this path that Cleese identified is not unique to religion. It’s a human thing — a common path in all human-populated organizations. If we could sum up what mystics are focused on and what their main concern is, I would argue that their core concern is about encountering and experiencing God. They encounter God in very real ways. Often mystics use language in which God becomes unified with people and their life experience.

Aren’t all founders, regardless of the organization we are talking about (religion, business, sports, etc.) like this in some way? A founder of something does what they do for the love of that thing, what they feel being engaged in it — how it touches their lives, transforms them into something better, and gives them fulfillment.

As organizations grow and develop, the organization discovers though that there is more complexity to be dealt with, more questions that…